jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 13, 2017 10:37:26 GMT -5
Put up pictures of your favorite stuff! I bought a box of this and wish I would have gotten tons more. Some of them were just, meh, but some turned out like this:
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 13, 2017 10:32:27 GMT -5
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 12, 2017 19:15:35 GMT -5
Wow, that is gorgeous workmanship.
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 12, 2017 18:32:09 GMT -5
The Koroit rough looks great - but boy is it messy to cut! You'll get some of that "Queensland red" all over you if you're not careful. The Ethiopian material looks like it's "chocolate" opal from Shoa Province. Good luck with it because it has a reputation of being very cracky. Some is stable and I hope that's what you got. The Ethiopian Welo opal is much more stable but it's a little tricky to cut because it's hydrophane (play of color disappears temporarily when it's immersed in water). It yields really beautiful stones. What we got was the potentially heartbreaking crackly kind. We spend about an hour chatting with the guy at the opal booth. He gave us a ton of tips and said this stuff was rage inducing. One thing he said he does is to get a 2 part epoxy, only use the first part and let your opals sit in it for weeks. He thinks it keeps them from cracking and drying out as much. In any case, I'll be putting these in a jar and just looking at them for a very long time. eta: also, yes the boulder opal is sooo messy. And stains everything. The first time I ever worked a piece was about a year ago and that little plastic apron I had was no match for it.
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 12, 2017 18:19:55 GMT -5
I picked these up last weekend. Most things I could ID, but these few have me stumped. The black/brown....someone mentioned it looked like some type of obsidian. It's got a nice polish on it, straight from the saw, but has that porcelain kind of feel that jaspers have. The red...maybe imperial jasper? I thought it might be an unusual color of willow creek, but another group thought it was probably imperial jasper. I'm pretty sure the multicolored one is morrisonite jasper, which has me stoked since I paid $2 for it. The last one...no idea....some kind of moss agate?
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 12, 2017 18:07:47 GMT -5
WOW! That's some nice material. At the last rock show I went to that would have cost a small fortune. I spent mumblety-mumble dollars. It was worth every penny. Bills are paid and I still have enough in savings for a decent down payment on a vehicle, so I'll consider it money well spent!
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 12, 2017 17:48:56 GMT -5
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 12, 2017 9:37:38 GMT -5
Hi Tony!
I should have known you would be here.
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 12, 2017 8:27:28 GMT -5
Hi and welcome (from someone brand new to this board as well!).
You live in one of my favorite cities. We have gone on vacation and rented a house on Agua Fria about a half a block away from the Railroad District for the last few years. Such an amazing little town.
I did a quick google search and there seems to be a club in ABQ. Check out the Santa Fe Jewelers supply. It's open to the public and they have all kinds of neat tools and supplies there as well as super knowledgeable people. I'm betting they could tell you if there is a club in Santa Fe. Or Mama's Minerals downtown would probably be able to point you in the right direction.
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 20:35:57 GMT -5
OMG! That bruneau and that ocean jasper is especially awesome.
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 20:05:39 GMT -5
Beginner? Nope, you are already there! BTW, I think that is Picasso Marble. Fantastic job on both of them! Thanks, and you are right.
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 20:04:23 GMT -5
Awesome! I have an old buck knife I've had since I was a teenager - one of these days I'm going to put on my big boy pants and try to make rock handles for it. Scares me to death because I don't want to screw up Thanks, there is definitely a bit of a learning curve. As you can see, I screwed up on the ocean jasper. One of the old timers seems to think I can fix it with a bit of epoxy. There are pins to attach the handle to the base, I'm terrified to try to drill into the rock. I just want to epoxy/glue it together but several of the club members are encouraging me to drill. You should try it! We can learn together!
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 19:01:52 GMT -5
Glad you have moved from stalking to posting! One thing I'm sure you have learned is how much we love pictures. So please show us some of your work! Ok, here are a couple of knife handles I am working on. Picasso Jasper and Ocean Jasper.
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 18:57:28 GMT -5
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 18:56:24 GMT -5
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 18:48:14 GMT -5
Ha! Me and my big mouth!
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 18:44:47 GMT -5
I'm attempting to figure out how to post from Imgur now....
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 18:41:42 GMT -5
Linda Marie Agate and Tiffany stone. I've got quite a bit left on these yet. Still finding flat spots to work out. imgur.com/Az2wGyeimgur.com/gYTnRa4eta: Pardon me while I figure out how to add pics....
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 15:48:12 GMT -5
I buy stuff from Phillip Stephenson (www.rarerocksandgems.com) and he has you guys listed in his links section. Welcome! I have bought rocks from him, too. He has some nice stuff. So, do you cab? I do. Though Manthing claims I mostly hoard and expects to come home and find me sleeping on a pile of shinys dragon style any day now.
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jet
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since April 2017
Posts: 103
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Post by jet on Apr 11, 2017 14:43:30 GMT -5
I buy stuff from Phillip Stephenson (www.rarerocksandgems.com) and he has you guys listed in his links section.
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